Steady progress is being made in providing water to the residents of Mashonamini village, in Bushbuckridge Local Municipality, according to the Department of Water and Sanitation.

The department on Monday said the first phase of projects to deliver water to the area had been completed and a total of R601 million has been allocated for the second phase.

“A service provider/main contractor has been appointed on the projects by Rand Water and is expected to be on site by 26 January 2015.

“This work that will start [next] Monday is expected to reach completion in line with the commitment of Water and Sanitation Minister Nomvula Mokonyane and Mpumalanga Premier David Mabuza by December 2015,” the department said.

Minister Mokonyane has also directed that work must be done block by block to make sure that no one misses out on getting clean drinking water.

Mashonamini Task team

A task team headed by the Director-General of the department, Margaret-Ann Diedricks, has been set up to make sure the project is delivered.
The task team is made up of members from the department, the province, Bushbuckridge Local Municipality and Rand Water.

“The task team will work closely with the relevant local councillors to ensure that the community is kept abreast of all the developments as they unfold. This will include timelines as well as the scheduling and placement of water tankers in the short-term,” the department said.

Residents threaten strike

Last week residents of Mashonamini threatened to strike if their needs weren’t addressed soon, according to a report by SABC Digital News.

The residents claim that they had been without water for the past twenty years, despite the completion of the multi-billion rand Inyaka Dam water scheme.